Brassiere

ABSTRACT

A brassiere having breast supporting members which can be folded back to provide a shallower cup of greater support in combination with fabric panels which encircle the wearer&#39;&#39;s body, the panels containing a pocket for stiffening elements on each side arranged to lie substantially vertically along the wearer&#39;&#39;s rib cage with the upper terminal end of the pockets positioned near the outermost edge of the breast supporting members provides improved breast support imparting desired upward tilt and roundness to the wearer&#39;&#39;s breasts in a comfortable and attractive manner.

United States Patent [1 1 Belardinelli Nov. 20, 1973 BRASSIERE [76] Inventor: Marie Belardinelli, Wilmington, Del.

[22] Filed: July 6, 1971 211 Appl. No.: 159,797

[52] US. Cl 128/465, 128/460, 128/477,

128/494, 128/512 [51] Int. Cl A41c 3/06, A41c 3/10 [58] Field of Search 128/456, 460, 463,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,244,175 4/1966 Sturges 128/465 2,764,761 10/1956 Rosenthal et al. 128/481 X 3,149,635 9/1964 Garutso 128/477 X 2,877,770 3/1959 Gold 128/465 X Primary Examiner-Werner H. Schroeder Attorney-Samuel V. Abramo [5 7] ABSTRACT A brassiere having breast supporting members which can be folded back to provide a shallower cup of greater support in combination with fabric panels which encircle the wearers body, the panels containing a pocket for stiffening elements on each side arranged to lie substantially vertically along the wearers rib cage with the upper terminal end of the pockets positioned near the outermost edge of the breast supporting members provides improved breast support imparting desired upward tilt and roundness to the wearers breasts in a comfortable and attractive manner.

4 Claims, 15 Drawing Figures Patented Nov. 20, 1973 3,773,052

4 Sheets-Sheet 1 20 4'5 40 42 46 16 INVENTOB 18 41 yarzfielmdz'zze ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 20, 1973 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 mrvzmrme M aria Belar 1 My W) ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 20, 1973 3,773,052

4 Sheets-Sheet 5 40 w 14 42 W9, 'INVENTOB 41 Mwrz'efielardz'rwlli ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 20, 1973 3,773,052

4 Sheets-Sheet 4 6g 0 92 1% [NVZZ'NTOR Marie Belardl'rwlizi Am/M ATTORNEY BRASSIERE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Modern brassiere designs are primarily concerned with a few distinct goals. They are designed to be applicable to a variety of types of breasts and are designed primarily to present the wearers breasts in the most attractive fashion at a minimum of inconvenience and discomfort. For convenience, the brassiere must be capable of providing its wearer with the desired support in a variety of body postures, both passive and active. Many of these devices rely on a somewhat rigid structure to provide the desired uplift such as disclosed in US. Pat. Nos. 2,061,238 and 2,429,680. Others make liberal use of stiffening elements or staves such as U.S. Pat. No. 3,244,175. Others combine a variety of designs with strategically located staves such as in the breast cups themselves, U.S. Pat. No. 3,1 15,141. I have designed a brassiere which incorporates a minimum of rigid materials with a maximum of breast freedom such that the brassiere can be adjusted in accordance with the circumstances and the wearers mode of attire to impart to the breasts desirable roundness and tilt, with no flattening effect and to give comfortable and healthful breast support in the most attractive manner. 7

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In summary, this invention relates to a brassiere comprising in combination two breast supporting members spaced apart and shaped to engage the lower portion of a wearers breasts, each of said members being formed of fabric and a perforated foam support member, material for encircling the wearers body, said material being provided with a pocket for a stiffening element on each side and arranged to lie substantially vertically along the wearers rib cage with the upper terminal end of the pockets positioned near the outermost edge of the breast supporting members, said breast supporting members being foldable downwardly such that a smaller portion of the wearers lower breasts are covered and supported with a larger amount of support material beneath the breast when said members are in a foled position.

The brassiere of this invention can incorporate a breast covering such as lace and can be either strapped or strapless with the latter form featuring a frontal opening. The brassiere of this invention is suitable for use with any shape or size of breasts and for any type of attire. Moveover, it is adaptable to a variety of clothing styles and occasions and can be advantageously used for nursing mothers.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The novel features of the brassiere of this invention will be best understood from the following description taken along with the accompanying drawings in which are depicted and designated by suitable reference characters in the various views.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a brassiere of this invention modeled, incorporating the features of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the brassiere illustrated in FIGJI as applied.

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 1 as applied.

FIG. 4 is a stretched-out front elevational view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 55 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 1, showing a lace breast covering at tached.

FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 6 as applied. I

FIG. 8'is a front elevational view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 6 as applied.

FIG. 9 is a stretched-out front elevational view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 6.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 8.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a strapless embodiment of the brassiere of this invention as applied.

FIG. 12 is a side elevational view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 11 as applied.

FIG. 13 is a front elevational view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 11 as applied.

FIG. 14 is a stretched-out front elevational view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 11.

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 15-l5 of FIG. 13.

Referring now to the drawings in detail wherein like reference characters indicate like parts in FIG. 1 the brassiere I0 is shown on a wearer 12 with a vee-shaped panel 40 attached to elastic panel 44 and thence in turn to elastic panel 18. The vee-shaped panel 40 can be composed of multiple layers of fabric, and features breast-supporting members 24 and 26 having outer perforated foam support members 52 and 53. The elastic panels contain a pocket arranged to accept a stave 48 and lie substantially vertically along the wearers rib-cage. The breast supporting members are closed at the top by elastic chest straps 28 and 20 which are connected to adjustable clamps 36 and 38 and thence to shoulder straps 32 and 34.

FIG. 2 shows the brassiere 10 of FIG. 1 from the side with a different perspective on the position of the resilient stave 48 along the rib-cage with its upper terminal end near the outer upper edge of breast supporting member 26 and vee-shaped panel 40. The outer perforated support member 53 and its relationship with the breast support member 26 are also shown in the different perspective.

In FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are illustrated the embodiment of this invention shown in FIG. I, in front elevational view with the brassiere 10 having a front section 14 comprising the vee-shaped panel 40 featuring breast supporting members 24 and 26. Also shown are optional staves 4] in pockets positioned in the center of the front section 14. The vee-shaped panel 40 is sttached at either edge to elastic panels 42 and 44 which in turn are attached to elastic side sections 16 and 18. The elastic panels contain pockets below the outer extremes of the vee-shaped panel 40 and its breast supporting members 24 and 26, said pockets arranged to accept staves 46 and 48. The breast supporting members 24 and 26 feature outer perforated foam support sections 52 and 53 and are closed at the top by elastic chest straps 28 and 30. Adjustable clamps 36 and 38 attach shoulder straps 32 and 34 to the chest straps 28 and 30 by means of slidable securing loops 56 and 57. The slidable loops permit the shoulder straps to be moved down off the shoulder. The shoulder straps are also connected to the terminal ends of the elastic panels 16 and 18 and contain hooks 20 and eyelets 22 for fastening the brassiere 10 around the wearer.

In FIG. is shown a cross section taken along line 55 of FIG. 4. Here the support of stave 46 is clearly depicted and the folded down inner perforated foam support member 50 is shown in its turned-down relationship to the outer perforated foam support member 52. The optional lace breast covering 54 is also shown in a folded position with all of the folded material providing a firm but comfortable support for the wearers breast.

In FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 the brassiere of FIG. 1 is shown with the optional breast coverings 54 and 55 attached and in place the lace covering attaches at the top to the adjustable clamps. The inner perforated foam support 51 is shown folded up in the breast support member 24 to provide an extension of the outer perforated foam support 53, over a larger portion of the lower breast of the wearer. FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 provide detailed from elevational views of the brassiere shown in FIG. 6.

FIG. is a cross-sectional view taken along line l010 of FIG. 8 and clearly depicts the unfolded relationship of the inner foam support 52 and outer foam support 50 along with the lace covering 54 contrasted with the folded-up relationship depicted in FIG. 5.

FIGS. 11-15 show a strapless embodiment 60 of the brassiere of this invention with the openable front section 62 comprising fabric panels 64 and 66 and breast supporting members 78 and 80, the latter containing perforated foam support members 82 and 84 maintained by semicircular support wires 86 and 88. The clotch panels 64 and 66 are attached to elastic side panels 68 and 70 and thence to a unitary back panel 72. At the junction of the fabric panels 64 and 66 with the elastic panels 68 and 70 are substantially vertical pockets for staves 90 and 92 positioned to lie along the rib cage of the wearer. The front section 62 opens and closes between the breast support members 78 and 80 by means such as the hooks 74 and eyelets 76 shown in FIG. 14.

The brassiere of this invention can be made of any suitable fabric as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Similarly, staves can be constructed of any of the suitable semirigid materials commonly used for this purpose including metal, plastic and naturally occurring materials. The optional breast covering can be made, for example, of lace or such other material with suitable aesthetic appeal. Adjustable clamps, hooks and eyelets as shown, can of course be replaced with other suitable means for accomplishing their function as will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

While preferred embodiments of this invention are depicted in the figures it will be understood that various modifications of such embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art and are intended to be included in the following claims.

The embodiments of this invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A brassiere comprising in combination two breast supporting members which are spaced apart and shaped to engage the lower portion of a wearer's breasts, each of said members being formed of fabric and a perforated foam support member; material for encircling the wearers body, said material being provided with a pocket for a stiffening element on each side and arranged to be substantially vertically along the wearers rib cage with the upper terminal end of the pockets positioned near the outermost edge of the breast supporting members; corners of each supporting member being connected by an arcuate and upwardly extending strap; shoulder straps having loops at their forward ends and being fixedly attached at their back ends to a rear portion of the support material; said arcuate and upwardly extending straps being separately received in said loops, said breast supporting members being foldable downwardly such that a smaller portion of the wearers lower breasts are covered and supported with a larger amount of support material beneath the breasts when said members are in a folded position.

2. A brassiere of claim 1 wherein a pocket is provided between the breast supporting members, said pocket adapted to receive a stave and arranged to lie vertically up the front of said brassiere.

3. A brassiere of claim 1 wherein a breast covering material is attached to the breast supporting members.

4. A brassiere of claim 1 wherein the breast supporting members are situated in the upper portion of a veeshaped panel comprised of multiple layers of fabric. 

1. A brassiere comprising in combination two breast supporting members which are spaced apart and shaped to engage the lower portion of a wearer''s breasts, each of said members being formed of fabric and a perforated foam support member; material for encircling the wearer''s body, said material being provided with a pocket for a stiffening element on each side and arranged to be substantially vertically along the wearer''s rib cage with the upper terminal end of the pockets positioned near the outermost edge of the breast supporting members; corners of each supporting member being connected by an arcuate and upwardly extending strap; shoulder straps having loops at their forward ends and being fixedly attached at their back ends to a rear portion of the support material; said arcuate and upwardly extending straps being separately received in said loops, said breast supporting members being foldable downwardly such that a smaller portion of the wearer''s lower breasts are covered and supported with a larger amount of support material beneath the breasts when said members are in a folded position.
 2. A brassiere of claim 1 wherein a pocket is provided between the breast supporting members, said pocket adapted to receive a stave and arranged to lie vertically up the front of said brassiere.
 3. A brassiere of claim 1 wherein a breast covering material is attached to the breast supporting members.
 4. A brassiere of claim 1 wherein the breast supporting members are situated in the upper portion of a vee-shaped panel comprised of multiple layers of fabric. 